The Bishop of Meath is an episcopal title which takes its name after the ancient

Kingdom of Meath Meath (; Old Irish: ''Mide'' ; spelt ''Mí'' in Modern Irish) was a kingdom in Ireland from the 1st to the 12th century AD. Its name means "middle," denoting its location in the middle of the island. At its greatest extent, it included all of ...

. In the

Roman Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

it remains as a separate title, but in the

Church of Ireland The Church of Ireland ( ga, Eaglais na hÉireann, ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Kirk o Airlann, ) is a Christian church in Ireland and an autonomous province of the Anglican Communion. It is organised on an all-Ireland basis and is the second ...

it has been united with another bishopric.

History

Until the early twelfth century, the Kingdom of Meath had been divided into eight small monastic

episcopal see An episcopal see is, in a practical use of the phrase, the area of a bishop's ecclesiastical jurisdiction. Phrases concerning actions occurring within or outside an episcopal see are indicative of the geographical significance of the term, mak ...

s, which were located at Clonard,

Duleek Duleek (; ) is a small town in County Meath, Ireland. Duleek takes its name from the Irish word ''daimh liag'', meaning house of stones and referring to an early stone-built church, St Cianán's Church, the ruins of which are still visible in Du ...

, Kells,

Trim Trim or TRIM may refer to: Cutting * Cutting or trimming small pieces off something to remove them ** Book trimming, a stage of the publishing process ** Pruning, trimming as a form of pruning often used on trees Decoration * Trim (sewing), or ...

Ardbraccan Ardbraccan ( ga, Ard Breacáin) is an ancient place of Christian worship in County Meath, Ireland. It is the location of the former residence of the Roman Catholic, then, after the Reformation, the Church of Ireland Bishop of Meath. It is approx ...

Dunshaughlin Dunshaughlin ( or locally ) is a town in County Meath, Ireland. A commuter town for nearby Dublin, Dunshaughlin more than tripled in population (from 1,275 to 4,035 inhabitants) between the 1991 and 2016 censuses. History Foundation Dunshaugh ...

Slane Slane () is a village in County Meath, in Ireland. The village stands on a steep hillside on the left bank of the River Boyne at the intersection of the N2 (Dublin to Monaghan road) and the N51 (Drogheda to Navan road). As of the 2016 census ...

, and Fore. By the time of the

Synod of Rathbreasail A synod () is a council of a Christian denomination, usually convened to decide an issue of doctrine, administration or application. The word ''synod'' comes from the meaning "assembly" or "meeting" and is analogous with the Latin word mean ...

, held in 1111, the last five had been united to the see of Clonard. Duleek was still recognized as a separate bishopric at the

Synod of Kells The Synod of Kells (, ) took place in 1152, under the presidency of Giovanni Cardinal Paparoni, and continued the process begun at the Synod of Ráth Breasail (1111) of reforming the Irish church. The sessions were divided between the abbeys o ...

, held in 1152, but disappeared not long after that date. The see of Kells was ruled together with Breifne (later Kilmore) in the second half of the twelfth century, but after 1211 Kells was incorporated into the

diocese of Meath The Diocese of Meath ( ga, Deoise na Mí) is an Irish diocese which took its name after the ancient Kingdom of Meath. In the Roman Catholic Church it still exists as a separate diocese, but in the Church of Ireland it has been united with other ...

. During the twelfth century, the bishops of Clonard were frequently called the "bishop of Meath" or "bishop of the men of Meath". Bishop

Simon Rochfort Simon Rochfort (also Simon de Rupeforti; died 1224) was an English bishop of Meath in Ireland. Life Rochfort was the first Englishman to hold the see of Meath, to which he was consecrated in 1194. He was one of the judges appointed by Pope I ...

transferred his seat from Clonard to

in 1202 and the title "bishop of Meath" became the normal style. Following the

Reformation The Reformation (alternatively named the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation) was a major movement within Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the Catholic Church and in ...

, there were two parallel

apostolic succession Apostolic succession is the method whereby the ministry of the Christian Church is held to be derived from the apostles by a continuous succession, which has usually been associated with a claim that the succession is through a series of bish ...

s. In the

, the bishopric of Clonmacnoise became part of Meath in 1569. In 1976, the bishoprics of Meath and

Kildare Kildare () is a town in County Kildare, Ireland. , its population was 8,634 making it the 7th largest town in County Kildare. The town lies on the R445, some west of Dublin – near enough for it to have become, despite being a regional cen ...

were combined to become the united bishopric of Meath and Kildare. Alone of English and Irish Anglican bishops, the bishop is styled "

The Most Reverend The Most Reverend is a style applied to certain religious figures, primarily within the historic denominations of Christianity, but occasionally in some more modern traditions also. It is a variant of the more common style "The Reverend". Anglic ...

", for historical reasons. In the

, Meath is still a separate title. The Roman Catholic bishop's seat is located at

Christ the King Cathedral, Mullingar Cathedral of Christ the King () is a Roman Catholic cathedral located in Mullingar, County Westmeath, Ireland. It is situated near the centre of Mullingar next to the Royal Canal. The cathedral is both the cathedral church of the Diocese of Me ...

. The current bishop is the Most Reverend

Thomas Deenihan Thomas Deenihan KC*HS (born 26 June 1967), in Cork, Ireland is the Bishop in the Catholic Church of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Meath. Early life and education Educated at North Monastery Christian Brothers School in Cork, he studied for the ...

, Bishop of the

Roman Catholic Diocese of Meath The Diocese of Meath ( ga, Deoise na Mí) is a diocese of the Catholic Church that is located in the middle part of Ireland. It is one of eight suffragan dioceses of the ecclesiastical province of Armagh. Thomas Deenihan has been bishop of the d ...

, who succeeded to the title on 18 June 2018.

Pre-Reformation bishops

Bishops of Clonard

Bishops of Meath

Bishops during the Reformation

Post-Reformation bishops

Church of Ireland succession

Roman Catholic succession

References

Bibliography

* * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Bishop of Meath Meath Religion in County Meath Bishops of Clonard or Kells or of Meath